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Gate (Japanese audio) - Episodes 07-09

I'm having a fun time watching this show, best moments of Episode 8:
Rory: "I'm almost a thousand years old."
Everyone: "WHAT?!"
Tuka: "I'm over a century old."
Everyone: "YOU'RE JOKING! Then, could you be..."
Lelei: "I'm 15."
Everyone: "Oh. Ok."

Akira: "Uhh... who's that?"
Itami: "Oh, this is... my ex-wife"
Everyone: "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH????????????"
 
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Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig Episodes 17-26 (or 43-52).

They actually did sneak in another Batou episode, and it was good.

While I had doubts about the main storyline before, I have to say that it pretty much worked for me throughout these last episodes. I think the fact that it tended to have less philosophical pondering and more of a focus on the individuals and their own struggles probably helped. There was still a fair bit of talking and I guess some of it was still philosophical but it felt more well thought out and relevant to the situation. The big conversation Batou is involved in was one of the best, although maybe that's just because I like Batou.

In the end, I really enjoyed this show and I'll most likely try to watch it again some day.

I also watched Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society.

Will probably talk about it in the ratings thread but I enjoyed it a lot too.

Kind of sad that I'm out of Ghost in the Shell for now (I could pick up Arise, though it seems to get mixed reactions).
 
Yeah I found Arise utterly disappointing on both occasions I watched it, unfortunately.

I'm not sure if you've seen them, but Mardock Scramble, Psycho Pass and Ergo Proxy are all well worth checking out if you liked GITS and want more in the same vein.
 
Lutga said:
Yeah I found Arise utterly disappointing on both occasions I watched it, unfortunately.

I'm not sure if you've seen them, but Mardock Scramble, Psycho Pass and Ergo Proxy are all well worth checking out if you liked GITS and want more in the same vein.
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I haven't watched any of those yet, I'll try to keep them in mind. Thanks.

I probably won't watch any of them immediately though, most likely I'll try something else for a bit just so I don't end up comparing them unfairly. I do have a pretty big pile of things to catch up on really (which is good, I suppose).
 
Space Dandy Season 2

After Wakanim screwed up the dub simulcast, I decided to wait until the BD to watch Season 2. Season 1 took a few a eps to settle in, but I loved how each episode offered a completely different experience (my highlights were eps 5,7,9 and 10).

As for Season 2? Wow. It hit the ground running and didn't let up.

The sheer amount of creativity that went into each episode was mind-boggling. Every episode was a homerun this season and I could talk about them for ages. The multiple Dandys of ep 14 had me laughing (especially Michael Jackson Dandy and Emo Dandy). Episode 17 completely caught me off guard when it started riffing both 80s movies (complete with Rocky montage) and the likes High School Musical! Props to the voice actors for some pretty good singing.

Episode 21 was the one that really stood out though, with its rumifications on life and death and the astonishing visuals and mood, it was a masterpiece. I also particularly loved Scarlet's extra screentime, episode 23 was particularly affecting. There was definitely a more reflective and somber tone to many of the episodes this season, whilst simultaneously I thought the comedy was even funnier in other episodes. That Space Dandy can so effortlessly accommodate both is a testament to the supreme skill of Bones as a studio.

It was good to see the multiple dimensions explanation confirmed too, it was clear that it was planned to end like this from the start and it makes every bonkers episode canon as well. The ending was incredible and absolutely fitting (though I watched it at 2 in the morning after marathoning the rest of the boxset so I was somewhat shattered.

Shows like Space Dandy are the reason I love anime to begin with. I want more!
 
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Unlimited Blade Works (TV) - Episodes 0-8

Really enjoying this, sticking nicely to the story while adding mixing extra material from other characters perspectives to keep things interesting.

There's a few nice subtle character movements that fans of the VN or Fate Zero will get some extra mileage out of too.
 
I've always thought the 'but you have to read the VN!' thing to be a little elitist - if the TV show is truly good, then it should be able to stand on its own feet, and as a piece of entertainment in its own right. There are plenty of people out there that have probably never touched a VN in their life - is their viewing of the show somehow invalid because they haven't followed the right steps and done something else first?

One of the reasons the Tsukihime anime was so crap was because it left out so much from the VN - but I think it's different when we're talking about whether a show inherently suddenly becomes better if you've consumed some other thing first - in my eyes, if it relies too heavily on that then it's failed in its mission.
 
I said "fully". You can still enjoy the anime but to get the full stay night experience then the stay night VN is the best. While there is a best order, it isn't essential (I saw zero first).
 
I haven't seen it, but I think the general consensus about UBW was that it was a bit of a mess, but it stayed very close to the VN. So fans of the series loved it, and the near consistent negative reviews the second earned from ANN caused an insane amount of bitchiness and arguing. Fans of Type-Moon came across abysmally in their forums, and it's a shame because I can't help but think it really put people off...

I read Fate/Zero, and the prologue of the VN, but I just couldn't muster the enthusiasm to continue with it. I'll probably go back at some point, because it seems like it'd be right up my street.
 
Smeelia said:
Lutga said:
Yeah I found Arise utterly disappointing on both occasions I watched it, unfortunately.

I'm not sure if you've seen them, but Mardock Scramble, Psycho Pass and Ergo Proxy are all well worth checking out if you liked GITS and want more in the same vein.
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I haven't watched any of those yet, I'll try to keep them in mind. Thanks.

I probably won't watch any of them immediately though, most likely I'll try something else for a bit just so I don't end up comparing them unfairly. I do have a pretty big pile of things to catch up on really (which is good, I suppose).
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My feelings on the post-SAC shows are rather reversed from that; I actually thought Arise was perfectly fine (if unspectacular), whereas Psycho Pass was one of the most disappointing things I've seen in recent memory. Perhaps I had the wrong expectations for it.
 
Professor Irony said:
Smeelia said:
Lutga said:
Yeah I found Arise utterly disappointing on both occasions I watched it, unfortunately.

I'm not sure if you've seen them, but Mardock Scramble, Psycho Pass and Ergo Proxy are all well worth checking out if you liked GITS and want more in the same vein.
Click to expand...
I haven't watched any of those yet, I'll try to keep them in mind. Thanks.

I probably won't watch any of them immediately though, most likely I'll try something else for a bit just so I don't end up comparing them unfairly. I do have a pretty big pile of things to catch up on really (which is good, I suppose).
Click to expand...

My feelings on the post-SAC shows are rather reversed from that; I actually thought Arise was perfectly fine (if unspectacular), whereas Psycho Pass was one of the most disappointing things I've seen in recent memory. Perhaps I had the wrong expectations for it.
Click to expand...
I did watch it quite early in my anime watching career so maybe re-watching the main series (which I am planning on doing when the movie is released over here and I buy both) so maybe my opinion of it will degrade.
 
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